So, Batman: Arkham Origins was officially announced via the usual method of Game Informer cover. It is indeed a prequel, taking place on Christmas Eve in Gotham, where Batman is up against eight of the world’s deadliest assassins.

We know one of them, Deathstroke. But who are the other seven? We look at some likely candidates.

Odds: Practically A Lock

Let’s see: He was featured in the last game, he has a lengthy history with Batman, and he’s the best shot in the entire world. We’ll be very surprised if Deadshot’s not taking aim at Batman again.

Odds: They might as well have put him on the box art.

It’s unlikely the game will be quite so Ra’s intensive this time around, but when you run something called the League of Assassins, it’s pretty unlikely you won’t be showing up in a Batman game with a plot centered around hired killers. It’s probable we’ll find evidence of Ra’s acting up behind the scenes.

Odds: Pretty much a given

Lady Shiva has beaten the ever-loving crap out of pretty much every member of the Bat Family… why wouldn’t she show up here?

Odds: 2 to 1

Freeze isn’t an assassin, per se, but the games have made it clear he and Batman have a lengthy history well before the first game; it’s likely the prequel will be getting into that.

Odds: 3 to 1

He’s mentioned in the first game, but didn’t come up in the second; he’s a bit of a cheesy villain but that’s never stopped this franchise before, and he can actually fight.

Odds: 3 to 1

The only thing holding up this Russian assassin from being in the game is the fact that, well, it’s a little weird that the Russian government would be sending an assassin after Batman. But hey, why not?

Odds: 4 to 1

Onomatopoeia is a fairly odd character even by Batman standards, but he’s undeniably effective. And also, if Kevin Smith ever finishes The Widening Gyre, they could have a tie-in.

Odds: 4 to 1

Cheshire isn’t really a Batman villain, per se, which may reduce her chances of being featured. On the other hand, she’s a master poisoner, and the games have made Batman suffering from an interface screw practically a tradition.

Odds: 4 to 1

We’re not really sure how gung-ho WB is on including the Court of Owls into a Batman game, and considering the game is out later this year, the team may simply not have had time to incorporate Talon into the game. But if they found the time, he’s in there.

Odds: OK, probably not happening

Yeah, we’re not really sure how a face-eating nutjob would play, but hey, a touch of Grant Morrison would make for an interesting game.

True, figured they could work him in as a bad guy who eventually ends up helping Batman in the end. DC needs to start promoting other people besides Batman and he’s a good segue character, even if he’s Bat-fam

As much as I would love to see Talon pop up here….I just don’t think he’s well enough known by the general population to make the cut. They’d basically have to explain the entire Court of Owls story arc in-game for it to work.

If its not a traditional cliffhanger, its definitely a “I want to see where they take the story next” kind of thing. Same problem I had with MGS3, even thought it was a masterpiece. You cannot drop “the world is run by a secret government cabal and no one knows who they are” and then make the next game 40 years earlier in Vietnam.

There’s an issue of Legends of the Dark Knight from years back that had Batman trying to get information about something(people who knew his identity IIRC) out of a close to death hospitalised Joker… Gotham City Hospital as a hub with a delirious, coma prone Joker handing out the missions – seems like a good starting point for a game.

If you play all the sidequests, you discover that Azrael and his order are pretty pissed off at Batman for some reason. Also, the Scarecrow is out there and is NOT happy. Plus Harley discovering what she discovers at the end.

I’m kinda bummed they’re not doing a sequel, because I’d really like to see them expand on Tommy Elliot and have him be Batman’s main pain in the ass for a while. I just hope this game doesn’t get super redundant fighting one assassin after another.

A little bit. This feels like WB wanted another Batman Arkham game out there, but didn’t want to have to wait for Rocksteady to finish one. I don’t want judge it too harshly at this point, but as of now I’m not as excited as I would be if it was Rocksteady.

I kind of hope Shiva is the assassin sent by the League of Shadows instead of any direct involvement from Ras. I’d like to see the 8 be: Deathstroke, Deadshot, Shiva, David Cain, KG-Beast, a Talon, Prometheus, and Cheshire.

I doubt it’ll be next year but they’re working on something next gen… That means getting the new game engine up and running on new hardware as well as new textures, animations etc. next 2-3 years is more realistic.

Doctor Death or Hush would be an interesting old school additions that I don’t recall being in the first or second game. I suppose we can count on more Riddler Challenges, my OCD will pleased with this.

I would also like to see more of Victor Zsasz, who’s creepy audio logs and phone calls just made the last two game that much more immersive.

Onomatopoeia is one my favorite Batman villains, for some reason. I think it’s an obsession with wanting Michael Winslow to do his voice. That, and Kevin Smith boasting that he created villain that’d be impossible to do outside of a comic.

I sort of hope that Talon DOESN’T make it in just to hold out hope that at some point we’ll get a Rocksteady-developed Night of the Owls standalone. I feel like that storyline, or the part of Knightfall where Bane has let all of the nutjobs out of Arkham to wear down the Batman would make a really solid “one night of insanity” sort of structure to a game.

Honestly, not everybody has to be EXCLUSIVELY a Batman villain. Merlyn (from Green Arrow) is commonly associated with the League of Assassins. Plus Lady Shiva & David Cain can provide a pair of good, lesser known Batman villains, who are heavily tied to a fan favorite character (Cassandra Cain). Heck you could throw Cassandra in there and have Batman save her from her Dad! :D But Ra’s al Ghul could be developed more as a character, and you could even have Talia meet Bruce for the first time and show how they fell in love, which would be good for all the fans of the pairing in spite of what’s happened recently between them in the Comics. Bane is also an easy candidate, as he’s big, threatening, has ocassionally hired his services to those in need and he’s never really been a big villain in these games in spite of his recognisable status in the franchise. Deathstroke has already been confirmed, and Deadshot is an easy option for #7. If you maybe count Talia, or Cassandra that could be 8. Or you could have the 8th spot filled by a Red Hood pre Joker, who is the 1st assassin after Batman and in the fight he is defeated and ultimately becomes scarred, to the point where at the very end you see him looking at his reflection, smiling, and laughing. Plus Black Mask & Penguin will be in it. I think that’s enough.